Chipmunk's Solo AT Thru Hike UpdateDay 184 on the Appalachian Trail Miles Hiked to Date: 1967 Hiked yesterday: 6 Trail Miles, Miles left to hike: 216

We awoke early in hopes of Chipmunk getting to the trailhead and finished in time to meet up with a reporter who requested an interview with her. Once Chipmunk had eaten and was fully dressed, she realized that she had taken her boots off in the cab of the truck and that she didn't want to put on a pair of shoes in the camper, just to walk to the front of the cab to get her boots on. So, she hitched a ride from her dad ... about 8-10 feet, to the cab.

Once her boots were on, we drove to the trailhead and she pulled "Big Red" onto her back. She grabbed her Leki Poles and hugged and kissed us goodbye before pausing for a quick photo. We confirmed our meet up time and place just before she disappeared into the woods again.

When we drove to the trailhead parking lot to pick up Chipmunk after her 6 mile hike, we met a thru hiker who had recently finished the trail. He was currently helping to shuttle a few other hikers to trailheads but took a moment to sign the Chip Mobile.

He introduced us to "Avocado" who got his trail name simply because he loves Avocados. He, too, signed the camper.

Avocado's hiking partner, "Garden Girl," also signed the camper. From the sounds of their trail names, they are well matched for one another.

We only waited a short time before Chipmunk arrived at the trailhead. It was earlier than we expected and she looked quite "fresh" after the six mile jaunt. (We needed her to "hold up" at this part of her hike because the next day's hiking required a tough 15 mile section; plus she wanted a little town time.) She climbed into the camper and changed into what she wanted to wear for her interview with The Bangor Daily News, who had contacted us a few days prior.

We arrived back in Monson and soon after, Aislinn of the Bangor Daily News met us along the bank of Lake Hebron, behind the Lake Shore House. Aislinn set up her camera and Chipmunk looked relaxed as she answered questions about her hike. Aislinn is also a hiker and writes specifically for the Outdoors section of the Bangor Daily News. She told us that the online version of the interview should be posted sometime on Wednesday, October 9th (at http://bangordailynews.com); the print version is expected to be available on Thursday, October 10th in the Outdoors Section.

After the interview, Chipmunk wanted a little bit of "civilization" so we drove into the neighboring town where we all stopped for some ice cream. Chocolate Chip was quite happy to get a "kiddie" dose of Vanilla soft serve. Chipmunk and I had Vanilla/Chocolate swirl cones. Papa Chip said he wasn't particularly interested in ice cream. (Yep! that bewilders me; I've never known a day that couldn't be made better with a little ice cream. I may have to re-think that once I kick off my "get healthy" adventure ahead.)

We returned to Monson and spent the evening catching up with one another and watching a few more episodes of Third Rock From the Sun before crawling into our bunks by 8 pm. While we were in town earlier, Chipmunk read a bunch of messages and blog comments that supporters have sent. They made her smile. I'm sorry that she doesn't have the time to reply to all of them. We truly try to let her "off trail" time be her own. Nonetheless, she does feel the support all of you have sent her way and our way.

If you enjoy reading the story of our adventure, and you’d like to send some “Trail Magic” to Chipmunk, click on the “Donate” button at the upper right corner of today’s blog post. Chipmunk maintains a twitter account: @openlymtngoat where a common hashtag is #GoChipmunk . She (or we) will try to answer any questions you may have about her hike and this family adventure.

Thanks again for all your support,Mama Chip, Papa Chip, Chipmunk and her dog, Chocolate Chip(Tammy, Jay, Neva and Coco)